Do you have a nest at home?

Do you have a swallow's nest at home? Here's what you need to know!

Swallows share the urban space with us, often choosing the façades of our buildings as nesting sites.

These birds are exclusively insectivorous, so their diet includes invertebrates that are vectors of human diseases or agricultural and forestry pests, responsible for incalculable damage.

And despite their crucial role in eliminating these invertebrates, every year swallow nests are destroyed due to the dirt they can cause.

As well as the removal of nests being expressly forbidden by law, swallows are very loyal to their breeding sites and if nests are removed they are very likely to rebuild them in subsequent years.

In most cases, periodic cleaning of the façade or floor will be enough to ensure peaceful coexistence with these birds.

However, if you wish, you can install a shelf underneath the nest so that dirt can accumulate there. Pay attention to the distance between the shelf and the nest, so that it doesn't serve as a landing place for natural predators such as birds of prey, or unnatural predators such as cats. Find out more about these shelves on our website.

Sand Martin Nest

Did you know that there is a species of martin in Portugal that digs its nests instead of building them?

The Sand Martin (Riparia riparia) is the smallest martin that occurs in Portugal and the one that stands out most for its nesting habits. Unlike its counterparts, which build their nests in mud, the Sand Martin digs tunnels in the sandy slopes of river banks or sand pits. This martin can also use holes in retaining walls for nesting.

This is a gregarious species that forms colonies of several hundred individuals. The largest colony recorded in the andorin campaign has more than 150 nests. If you too know of one of these colonies, register it on our website!

Barn Swallow Nest

Did you know that all the swallow and martin species that occur in Portugal have different nesting habits? And that it's possible to identify which species of swallow a particular nest corresponds to?

In the case of the Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica), the nests are small open bowls built with mud and straw and can be found in roofs, outbuildings or house façades, usually on urban peripheries or in rural areas. Although Barn Swallows nest solitarily, in occasional cases they can form small colonies.

If you come across one of these nests, or any other swallow or martin, record it on the website and help us conserve these birds!